The Cincinnati Opera has announced it will present the United States premiere of “Another Brick in the Wall — The Opera” with original words and music by Roger Waters, shown performing at the 2016 Annual Bridge School Benefit Concert in Mountain View, Calif. Amy HarrisInvision/AP

The Cincinnati Opera has announced it will present the United States premiere of “Another Brick in the Wall — The Opera” with original words and music by Roger Waters, shown performing at the 2016 Annual Bridge School Benefit Concert in Mountain View, Calif. Amy HarrisInvision/AP

‘Another Brick in the Wall’ opera U.S. premiere will be in Cincinnati

The Cincinnati Opera has announced that it will present the United States premiere of “Another Brick in the Wall — The Opera,” based on the Pink Floyd album “The Wall” with original words and music by Roger Waters, in July 2018.

A release from Cincinnati Opera emphasizes this is not a concert version of the album or a rock opera. Rather, it is a full operatic version of “The Wall” story of the self-loathing rock star Pink, composed by Julien Bilodeau with eight soloists, 48 chorus members and a 70-piece orchestra.

The world premiere was this past weekend Opéra de Montréal, ironically in the city where an incident with a fan 40 years ago prompted Waters to write “The Wall,” which became a hit 1982 movie in addition to classic 1979 album. The album has been presented in its entirety in elaborate tours by Waters and Pink Floyd, but a Rolling Stone review affirms this is very much a new creation.

“Although the production contains the same songs and running order as the original, the story of ‘The Wall’ comes into better focus here,” critic Kory Grow wrote. “The opera shows the revelations of a shell-shocked rock star, so disgusted with himself that he retreats into his mind to find out why he feels so dejected, often watching his past in this-is-your-life–style flashbacks. Sure, that's also the basic plot of the album, but seeing it acted out with different characters singing the songs, as opposed to just Waters, fleshes it out anew much like the Who did when they turned Tommy into a movie.”

Cincinnati Opera is a co-producer of the new opera, and the Queen City presentation will mark the Opera’s return to Cincinnati’s Music Hall after a $135 million renovation. It will bring back the world premiere team of director Dominic Champagne, conductor conductor Alain Trudel, baritone Etienne Dupuis singing the role of Pink and others.

Tickets to “Another Brick in the Wall — The Opera” will be available in a limited pre-sale, with details to be announced at a later date. The Opera encourages people to sign up for updates online.